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Hi Alison,

If you're getting lots of hugs after class, then you are definitely "in"! It makes me smile to read what you are doing for/with these girls. Excellent! Perhaps you could incorporate some self-massage. I often do a routine of massage about the head, neck and upper back that seems to get people loose and achieve that "eyes half-closed" look, like a puppy getting rubbed on its belly.

Basically, it is this:

Start off with pointer and middle fingers rubbing little circles around the temple, then continue up along the hairline until the fingers meet at the top of the forehead, then travel back to the temples.
From here you can go south into the cheeks and jaw, meeting at the chin and reverse your direction.
For clearing the nasal passages, take the 3 middle fingers, with the pointers on top, on either side of your nose, press in and pull the skin outward towards the ears.
You can also add pressing in and pulling up underneath the eyebrows, and pressing in and pulling down slightly under the eyes.

Next the ears...
Take the pointer finger behind the ear and the middle in front (caution people with hearing aids ahead of time), and while pressing in slightly, go up and down.
With your thumb outside the fist, grab the lobes and pull down...then move all along the perimeter of the ear.

Now with the 3 middle fingers, massage circles at the hairline behind the ears, and move in to the back of the neck, where they will meet...and reservse back out.
Take the 4 fingers of each hand behind the neck, and with all fingers touching, pull out to the sides (towards the shoulders), ending behind the ears, elbows leading the way.
Then, point the elbows up to the sky, and walk hands down the back. Press into the skin on the back, and s lo w l y lower the elbows. When you find a spot that needs kneading, go for it!! Grab that skin with the 4 fingers and massage away.

Obviously, you can massage anywhere on the body. One thing they might like is to get them all standing close together in a line, have them make a quarter-turn to the left, and then instruct each person to massage the shoulders of the person in front of them. Then turn to the reverse direction (right), so they can receive the massage back.

One area people usually do not know on their own bodies, which I think feels yummy when it is massaged, is the hip socket. I sometimes ask people before we do Figure 4, to place one foot on the floor (while they are on their backs), and turn out the other leg, and then place that turned-out ankle across the opposite thigh. Open up the joint by slowly flapping that bent leg open, and increase the stretch by placing both hands inside the knee on the inner thingh. Slowly walk the hands down the inner thigh, massaging as you go. When you get to the hip joint, massage all around. Then take your hands on the outside of the knee and outer thigh, and counterpose by pressing the bent knee towards the opposite hip.

Hopefully, the sensations of gentle, loving, self-induced touch will help free them from some of the demons of their pasts.

Wishing you all the best, Alison!

Much ,
Susan

you, Alison!